A Date
by Noc and NC
Summary: After hearing a suggestion from her friends, Sakura decides to ask Rinne out on a date to get to know him better. Lured by food and other free possibilities, he accepts. Both may enjoy themselves more then they thought they would- or maybe not.
1. Rather Casual, Actually

**Rather Casual, Actually**

Mamiya Sakura was, at first glance, a normal sixteen year old. She did well enough in academics to not fall behind, her ability in sports was average, and she had yet to join any clubs. However, there was one thing about her that set her apart from the rest of the student body- and that was the fact that she could see ghosts. She had been spirited away as a child and had been able to see them ever since. The girl had gotten used to it over the years though, and didn't so much as blink if a person happened to walk through the wall.

It was thanks this unique ability that her high school life became interesting.

About a month after the beginning of school, the boy whose seat was next to hers came to class for the first time. Wearing a strange abet fancy haori. While tossing dog biscuits around the room to lure a giant Chihuahua inside. No one else in the class noticed the bazaar event other than her, which led the schoolgirl to the obvious conclusion that her classmate- Rukudou Rinne- was a ghost.

One thing led to another, nothing better to do, why not- there were several popular lines that could be used to describe the reasoning for Sakura's actions that day, but regardless of which one she chose, the girl was now somewhat involved in the things Rinne did while away from school. He was a shinigami- _sort of_. And yet he was human- _sort of_. And she was…

His supply of spare change.

Her classmate's job as a sort-of-shinigami was to guide spirits to the afterlife when they themselves were unable or unwilling. This cost money- something that caught her by surprise. What was even more surprising was how painstakingly poor Rinne appeared to be. Sakura was a nice person, always willing to lend a ten-yen coin here and there, so when the red haired, haori wearing Rukudou-kun asked for a bit of economic assistance she could never turn him down.

Maybe she shouldn't say that her school life had become interesting since encountering Rukudou Rinne, but that _Rukudou Rinne was very interesting_.

"Why not ask him out?"

The girls in Sakura's class had, at some point, come to think that she and Rinne were friends of sorts. She didn't mind this assumption- nothing wrong with being friends with a boy. But being friends meant they knew things about each other and shared secrets. She did know some things about him that no one else did, and he was aware of her ability to see apparitions, but beyond that they were nothing like friends. Sakura mulled her classmates' words around in her head for some time after that, thinking about her odd relationship with Rinne and her curiosity towards him. Asking him out would be a good was to get to know him better, wouldn't it? It didn't even have to be a serious date. Going out just for fun, testing the waters- teenagers did that all the time, right? It was normal and if Mamiya Sakura was anything to the ordinary eye, she was normal.

"I'm afraid I'll have to decline"

Sakura blinked once, twice, and then narrowed her eyes as her friends- trying so hard to seem like they weren't listening in- began murmuring about the sad turn of events.

"Why?" she questioned, not ready to admit defeat just yet. Rinne had a cold, loner-type attitude, but she'd learned that with enough pestering he usually gave in and listened to what she had to say. "I know you're not busy"

"On the contrary," Rinne countered while smoothly closing his textbook. "I happen to be doing something this Saturday evening"

She was not convinced. "Oh really? Like?"

"Like…" the boy frowned, looking around the classroom to see who was listening. "Shinigami business" he finished cautiously.

"Then I'll help you finish quickly and then we can go have fun!" Sakura pressed. "Come on, I'll pay for dinner and the movies, and whatever else you want to do. Can you _really_ pass up so much free stuff?"

Rinne raised a brow. "Mamiya Sakura…if I didn't know any better, I would have to say you were bribing me"

The spiritually aware girl smiled victoriously. "So when and where are we meeting?"

* * *

It was a quarter to six, and as Sakura adjusted her clothing for the eighth time she wondered if she looked alright. Her hair was in its usual style, but she had put ornament-type hair ties in instead of the usual plain ones, so tonight, two little cherry blossoms hugged the tail of her braids. They were her favorites, so she hoped it didn't look too childish or silly. But…what about the rest of her? She had on a sleeveless white top that was slightly ruffled around the hips and a blue denim skirt. On her feet were a pair cute pink sandals that, in her opinion, matched her hair ties quite nicely. Was this okay? She hadn't dressed up too much, had she? Or too little? Maybe she should have worn earrings or a necklace?

No, no. Sakura shook her head. This was fine. It wasn't supposed to be a big deal anyways. Heck, she wasn't even expecting him to wear anything other than his usual gym clothes. Their meeting time had been set for five-thirty, so it was no wonder she was starting to worry over her appearance. Too much time made her think about all sorts of things.

On that note, the girl looked at her watch again. Five to six.

"Geez, why is he so late?" her question was accompanied with a scowl. "He didn't lie to me just to get out of this, did he? I don't think Rukudou-kun is like that, but…ooh, if he _did_ do that then I'm going to-"

Her monologue was interrupted by a light tap on the shoulder. Sakura blinked back into reality, turning to see who it was that wanted her attention. She was shocked to see that it was Rinne. Her mouth hung open as she stared at him, stunned and disbelieving.

He _wasn't_ wearing his gym uniform! Instead his attire consisted of a pair of worn-out jeans, a loose black shirt and an off-white sweater overtop of that. The outfit wasn't anything special. Rather casual, actually. But seeing him in street clothes was…well, different. Rukudou-kun was not only interesting, but also _attractive_.

With a tiny little blush spreading across her cheeks Sakura managed to shut her mouth, swallow some saliva, and smile. "You look nice!" she blurted, feeling that her enthusiasm was a bit much.

Rinne stared off into the distance, looking melancholy as usual. "Ah, well…these are the only clothes I have other than my uniform so…"

Sakura began to sweat, feeling like a fool when his words cast the two of them into silence. You really are poor, huh, Rukudou-kun? Must be tough. Does it hurt your pride to have a girl offer to pay for a date? I was the one who asked, though, so even if you weren't poor I still would have paid! But I feel a bit bad. Maybe I shouldn't have pressured you into this…

Heaving a sigh, Sakura finally took notice of the hand waving in front of her face. "Eh?"

"Although your eyesight is exceptional," the red haired boy in front of her started, "your hearing seems to be lacking, Mamiya Sakura. Let's not waste any more time. The wayward spirit is about a block from here"

"Speaking of time," Sakura mumbled as she followed the boy down the street. "Why were you so late?"

Rinne didn't look back at her as he answered. "There was a task I had to do earlier, and it took me longer then I thought it would"

"Like a part-time job?" the girl wondered aloud.

"Uh…" the redhead's pace quickened, his head handing particularly low as they crossed the road. "Something like that"

Something like that…? Her brow furrowed. What's that supposed to mean?

Before Sakura could question the elusive boy any further the yomi no haori appeared in Rinne's hands, flowing in the evening wind as he slide it over his shoulders. The girl touched her purse lightly in response.

Ghost-hunting was certainly a memorable way to start her first date.

* * *

Me, writing a Kyoukai no Rinne fanfiction? Damn right I am! I've been envisioning this since chapter two, and I decided I had to write it before any of my crazy ideas faded away. This story takes place at no particular time in the manga (there's only five chapters so far, after all…), but I will be mentioning things as they pop up in the canon story, such as Rinne's grandmother and such. Probably Sakura's family, if their ever introduced.

With that said, I don't plan on making this a long story. Probably only about five chapters at most. Rinne and Sakura won't necessarily fall in love during this time period, but they will complete their date.

I picture Sakura to be a sensible, down-to-earth girl who is pretty much numb to things people would consider strange, considering how long she's been able to see apparitions. She seems very modern, so I don't think she would be terribly shy about asking someone as unresponsive as Rinne out on a date. Rinne is very unique to me- he's more humble and polite than any of Rumiko's male leads thus far, and I absolutely love it. Mamiya Sakura! who calls people by their full names? Rinne, that's who. He's also poor, and this gives him an injured sort of pride I like working with.

So, that's how I'll be writing these freshly developed characters! Totally not expecting a reaction from anyone, but I had fun writing this first chapter so that's all that really matters. Of course, reviews are _always_ appreciated!


	2. Quite Far Gone

**Quite Far Gone**

"I don't see anything spirit-like around here, Rukudou-kun" Sakura said after they had spent twenty minutes searching the general area.

The redhead shushed her and continued to scan the horizon diligently.

Sakura huffed a little in response, crossing her arms as she looked around unenthusiastically. "Some date this is turning out to be" she mumbled quietly.

Apparently she hadn't said it all _that_ quietly, though, because Rinne quickly turned to face her. "Mamiya Sakura, please be patient. Might I remind you that accompanying me here was entirely _your_ idea?"

The girl gave an apologetic sigh in knowing that he was right. "I'm sorry...I guess I'm just a little cold from being outside for so long" she put on a smile. "Let's keep looking! I'm sure we'll find it soon if we…" she trailed off, cocking her head to the side as her date pulled off his haori. "We…aren't going to look anymore?"

Tucking the fancy material under his arm, Rinne wordlessly started to unzip his sweater. He wouldn't…would he?

Sakura's suspicions were confirmed when he shrugged off the sweater and held it in her direction, staring nonchalantly at the ground all the while. Her cheeks warmed, a feeling of gratitude overcoming her. He was giving it to her to wear! Rukudou-kun was really a nice guy underneath all that evasiveness and disinterest.

"Th-thank you…!" she managed, reaching slowly for the article of clothing.

"Just don't damage it" he sighed as the sweater was ripped from his fingers. A slight shriek followed the action, making Rinne spin on heel to see what the out-of-place noise was for.

It happened so fast it was almost impossible to see with the human eye. For just one second the red haired boy saw Sakura being pulled downwards by a pair of much too clingy hands. When he blinked she was gone, sweater and all.

"M-Mamiya Sakura!" he exclaimed in panic, lunging at the earth to follow her.

His face hit the dirt and he recoiled, confused. Spitting out the soil in his mouth, Rinne pushed against the ground heavily, trying to slip through as he normally could. A couple of minutes of struggling passed by and then the boy almost did a face-palm, realizing that he had yet to put the yomi no haori back on. Embarrassed, he glanced around to find the area free of observers. The redhead got to his feet, picking up his haori where it had been dropped and brushing it off before putting it on once more.

Taking in a breath of air to calm himself, the sort-of shinigami then proceeded to sink through the earth, eyes closed as his body passing through the solid ground. Soon enough he had slipped into open air again, and the boy opened his eyes just as his feet touched pavement.

"Of course" he said observantly, staring down the long, damp tunnel in front of him. "The sewer system…" the hands that had dragged Sakura to this place flashed through his mind, looking less human as he repeated the scene of her disappearing more than once. "That was no doubt the ghost said to be located in this area. I hadn't thought of looking underground. But…to drag a human down here, it must already be very corrupt" he glanced around. "This might be bad..."

* * *

"Hey now, I don't think it's very good of you to do this!" Sakura scolded the ghost that was pulling her down the tunnel at a break-neck speed. She swallowed the foul tasting air, trying hard to speak again. "You'll be punished!"

"What, are you going to beat me up?" the ghost jived, a grin on their misshapen face. "I don't think so!"

Sakura squirmed. It was true- she couldn't to anything to this spirit. Normally she could break through them with a bit of effort, but for some reason this ghost was almost like a solid being. None of them had been able to drag her through the ground, or anything else like that. There was something peculiar about this one.

He looks strange, too, the girl thought in worry. He's all out of shape… it's like…looking at a wonky mirror. Has he become an evil spirit? Ah, that's not good. It'll cost Rukudou-kun more money this way-

Sakura's train of thought switched rails. That's right! Rukudou-kun should be chasing after us, right? The girl relaxed. He'll come and save me! Or at least get rid of the ghost.

"Guess I'll help him out!" she said before taking a deep breath, almost chocking on the stagnant air. "_Rukudou-kun! Rukudou-kuuun! RUKUdmmph!_" she glared at the ghastly hand now covering her mouth.

"Shut up, will ya?! Noisy girl" the spirit grumbled.

Sakura closed her hazel eyes in defeat. The ghost's hand remained clamped over her jaw as the air rushed passed her, the gurgling of sewer water dim in her ears. Something slipped from her arm, making the girl snap her eyes open. In a blur she saw her purse tumble to the gritty pavement below. She frowned behind the fingers covering her mouth, lamenting the loss of such an important item. At least it hadn't fallen into the water. Hopefully Rukudou-kun would catch up to them quickly so she would have time to search for it.

She wasn't sure how much time had passed after that, but suddenly the ghost came to a stop. Sakura glanced around warily, unsure of where they were or what this marauding spirit was going to do with her. All around them were many bars of metal, twisted together like some sort of cage. She felt the ghost's grip begin to loosen, and before she knew it Sakura was flat on her back and the ghost had drifted to the other side of the bars that surrounded her.

"I bet your curious about why you're here, right?" the spirit said to her with a warped smile. "I'm dead now, so I can pass through these bars easily. But you… you're alive. Solid. You only got this far because of me. I bet you can't get out on your own" he chuckled when Sakura's eyes widened, knowing the girl was starting to understand the situation. "You'll be my pet from now on. The first didn't survive long …you'll be smarter than her, okay?"

The first? Sakura's mind echoed uneasily as she moved to get up. Her hand brushed against a hard, dusty object. She looked to see what it what it was, she froze.

A skull.

Now that she looked around, the girl saw all sorts of bones scattered around. Human ones. Slowly turning her hazel eyes on her captor, Sakura put on a glare. "You…h-how many people have you caught like this before?!"

"Just the one. And now you"

"I'll get out, you know!" she told him defiantly. "I have someone coming to save me! A-and he'll make sure you never do this again!"

The ghost gave another short laugh. "The first girl said something like that too, but she was wrong" he drifted closer to the bars, and Sakura thought his distorted expression looked like something of a sneer. "You're wrong too"

And with that her captor faded away completely, passing through the rounded wall behind him noiselessly. Sakura stared at the empty space in front of her for a moment, her face pale.

Rukudou-kun _would_ come and help. She _knew_ he would, if only for the fact that it was his job. Despite this, Sakura could not shake off the uneasiness that surrounded her much like the scattered bones. She squeezed her hands tight, feeling a soft material between her fingers.

"Eh?" the girl looked down, noting the off-white sweater in her arms. "Ah, Rukudou-kun's sweater!" she turned it around in her hands a little, looking for damages. "Looks like it made it through the trip okay, at least…"

After a minute of simply grasping the article of clothing in her fingers, Sakura slid her arms into the sleeves and fitted the sweater over her shoulders, doing up the zipper. Tucking her knees up to her chest, the girl hugged her bare legs and rested her head. The warmth of the boy's clothing let her relax, color returning to her cheeks as she awaited Rinne's arrival.

* * *

"At lease I'm going the right way" Rinne noted as he picked a familiar purse up off the unclean pavement.

Mamiya Sakura… did she drop it on purpose? He wondered, holding onto it as he continued to rush along. He could sense it- the darkened aura of a corrupted spirit.

Rinne had to stop himself immediately to keep from plowing into the sought-after apparition, which appeared suddenly through one of the walls. The diseased man raised a wonky eyebrow at the boy's unexpected appearance, as though he had merely been passing through and spotted something unusual.

"Now this is strange!" the ghost said with interest. "No one's ever come down here before! Are you the one the girl was talking about?"

Rinne narrowed his eyes. "…You mean the girl you dragged down here just now?"

"That's right! 'Someone's coming to save me!' she said. So, is that you?"

"I supposed I must be" the boy replied, watching his target cautiously.

"By the way, how can you see me? That girl, too. Are you a ghost as well?"

"No…I'm a human of sorts. You could also call me a shinigami. As for that girl…" Rinne looked to the side. "Well, that's none of your business. Now I have some questions. How are you- a being with no solid form- able to take hold of a living human and pull them through the earth as though they were dead themselves?"

"Hmm? You're curious?" the spirit scratched at his warped chin. "Alright, I'll tell you! You see, I had a poor dating record when I was alive. Girls broke up with me all the time. A pretty sad life! And then I died. It didn't take me long to notice, because I could pass through things like they were nothing- even other people. This was ironically not much different from when I was alive, though! Girls just passing by, me not being able to stop them…I wanted to hold them close and make sure they'd never leave me…!"

"…And your strong desire to grasp the living made you corrupt and fueled your strength, giving you the power to do just that" the redhead concluded soundly. "I see…it seems you're quite far gone. Getting you to pass on will be very costly"

"Is that so? Well, you don't have to do anything, shinigami-san! Just leave me be…" the spirit smiled a concave smile. "I'll take good care of that girl, you know, I swear- like she was my very own puppy"

Gritting his teeth, Rinne withdrew a bill from inside Sakura's purse and held the rectangular piece paper between his index and middle finger menacingly.

* * *

The soft crushing noise of shoes on dirt caught Sakura's attention immediately and the girl lifted her head up. She saw red hair and a white haori with fancy patterns on it, as well as a black shirt and faded pants. A smile bloomed on her face and she bounded to her feet, running up to the mangled bars to greet the sort-of shinigami on the other side.

"Rukudou-kun!" she laughed. "I'm so happy!"

"I'm afraid…you will not be for much longer, Mamiya Sakura" the boy told her gravely.

Sakura's smile faded. "Why? You didn't manage to guide the spirit into the afterlife?"

"No…I did do that"

Puzzlement crossed her features. "Then what's the matter?"

"You see, I…!" he clenched his fist, looking as if he was in pain. "I…borrowed a thousand yen bill from your purse! I'm sorry for using it without permission, but the situation was dire. I swear I will pay you back!"

Sakura laughed awkwardly as he forced out the words. "No, no…that's fine. I don't mind at all"

"Really?" he relaxed slightly. "Are you sure? It's quite a large sum"

"Um…consider it payment for saving me?"

Rinne appeared to think about this for a moment before nodding in agreement. "Alright. That seems fair"

Actually, if I was paying you I'd give you a lot more! Sakura pointed out in her head, before taking a small step back from inside the cage. "How do I get out?" she wondered aloud, looking at the bent pieces of metal.

"The same way you got in, I'm sure" Rinne answered, stepping through the bars effortlessly. For seeing ghosts as long as she had, watching someone she knew was alive do such a thing was almost strange to her. "I'll just-"

The boy's sentence was cut short by a loud crunching noise. He looked down at the fragile bone that had crumbled beneath his foot and took a step back. His eyes trailed along the ground, noticing the bones strewn across it for the first time.

"This is what's left of a girl he had captured before me" Sakura told the redhead slowly. "Although I'm not sure how long she's been…like this"

A solemn expression formed on Rinne's face. "That ghost who held her here will be judged during the reincarnation process. He will most likely live his new life as something lesser to repent for his sins"

Sakura crouched down beside the skull near her, reaching towards it. Her fingertips brushed against the pale surface of what was once a girl's head as if to comfort the departed spirit. "There was no one… to come and save her" she breathed, her eyes becoming moist. "It's kind of sad"

"She must have been very desperate to leave this place. It's likely the girl passed on the moment her soul left its body, so you needn't worry. She'll live a happy live when she is reborn"

The schoolgirl sniffed at Rinne's words as she stood up. "Yeah" she sighed, blinking back her tears.

The redhead stared off at nothing for a moment, before raising her purse to eye level and swinging it in a pendulum-like fashion. "Be cheerful, Mamiya Sakura. I believe I agreed to accompany you on a date"

"Ah?" Sakura rubbed at her hazel eyes, a bit of a smile forming on her face. "That's right…!" she took her purse back from him, slipping it onto her shoulder. "Let's go, then"

Nodding, Rinne took a hold of one of her hands and gave a little push of his legs. Sakura closed her eyes as they passed through the tunnel walls. Soon her hand was released and she reopened them, knowing they were back above ground. The sky was dark now, stars glowing faintly in the sky as the moonlight streamed through the clouds.

"Its past seven-thirty now…" the girl announce after giving her wristwatch a glance. "What should we do?"

The red haired boy merely shrugged.

I guess Rukudou-kun wouldn't have much of an idea, right? Sakura thought mentally, picking through their options. It's too late for strolling now… the early show at the movies has probably started already…

Her eyes drifted to her date, who was now looking at the ground with a tired expression on his face. Their 'adventure' must have taken a lot of energy out of him. Sakura smiled when his eyes shifted towards her curiously.

"It's a bit late," the hazel eyed girl offered, "but how about we get something to eat?"

* * *

Chapter two! Tada! It's a fair bit longer than the first chapter, but that was just the introduction. I also wanted to get the whole ghost-hunt done in one go, since I'm just splitting the chapters up into sections of events. Chapter one, asking out. Chapter two, ghost-hunt. Chapter three, dinner. And so on.

It wouldn't be Kyoukai no Rinne without a ghost showing up, but I had to do the whole thing in a very assumption-based manner because there's a_ lot_ of things about ghosts and corruption and getting spirits to pass on that hasn't been explained yet. Totally winged it, basically. We can all use our imaginations to think of how Rinne convinced that corrupt spirit to pass on, but we know it took him about an hour.

I'm surprised I got reviews! There weren't any fanfictions for this manga, and it's only just getting started so I assumed people wouldn't be interested in reading about it much, but it seems liked so I'm happy.

Nothing else to say except I hope you enjoyed the chapter, and feel free to review!


	3. It Looks Good

**It Looks Good**

It's…so plain. Sakura thought, unable to keep herself from staring at Rukudou-kun as he ate his boiled cabbage.

When deciding on which restaurant to eat at, the girl had only been concerned with the decency of the building and the variety of foods they served. This way, they would be comfortable and both would be able to eat what they liked. Price hadn't really been on her mind, but the red haired boy ordered the cheapest thing in the place anyways.

From watching him gather the various offerings students left at the instrument shelter, Sakura was fairly sure that Rukudou-kun wasn't a picky eater. He took everything from inside of it with the same careful need, his expression only changing to distain when the item was passed its expiry date. Boiled cabbage probably didn't bother him no matter how tasteless it might be, so she tried to forget about feeling bad as she ate her own food.

Their plates were slowly becoming clean. Sakura glanced around at the other tables as she chewed. Across from then, a girl laughed at her company's story. To the right, a pair of teenagers awkwardly exchanged words. Now that she looked, their section was filled with couples. They were all chatting away, and as she noticed this Sakura felt very out of place. This was supposed to be a date, and yet she and Rukudou-kun hadn't said one thing to each other since they sat down.

Staring down at her half-eaten meal, the girl bit her lip a little and lifted her head. She was surprised to find her hazel eyes meeting Rinne's red ones. They held each other's gazes for a moment before Rinne looked downwards again, his expression unreadable.

"Um!" Sakura started, rapidly thinking of something to say. "How have you been doing in school, Rukudou-kun?"

The boy paused in his movements, chopsticks hovering in front of his mouth. "School?"

"Yeah!" the girl leaned forward a little, her braids coming dangerously close to her food. "You were away for the first month, so I thought you might be having trouble catching up. I mean, if you like, I could lend you my notes"

The redhead stared at her, lowering his chopsticks to his plate. "…If it isn't troublesome, then…that would be much appreciated"

"I'll give them to you on Monday"

He nodded.

Something else to talk about, something else to talk about…! Sakura wracked her brain for information. "Why did you decide to go to our high school?"

"This area has a high concentration of spirits, so it seemed like a good choice"

"Oh, that makes sense" she nodded a little. "I just decided to go to there because the uniforms were cute"

The red haired boy sitting across from her gave an unexpected chuckle, capturing her attention. She'd never heard him laugh before. Looking closely, the girl could see that his mouth was turned upwards in a smile. It was somewhat charming.

I hope he's not laughing _at_ _me_, though! Sakura thought, staring at him quizzically. "What? You don't think I look cute in uniform?"

Rinne looked like he had been about to say something, only he had frozen during the process of forming words. "Ah…" he tried. "That's…"

If his hair and eyes weren't so brilliantly red already, Sakura would have noticed the slight tinge on his cheeks as she continued. "Well I think it looks good. You'd look good in our school uniform too! The tie would match your hair" she gave a little smile at that.

"Unfortunately, I will never have enough money for such a thing in this lifetime" he told the girl shortly, his expression diminishing into the usual melancholic one.

"Well, maybe in your next life, then?" Sakura took a small sip of her soda.

"Maybe" he sighed, suddenly looking distant.

The waitress came to take their empty plates, leaving Sakura the bill. As the girl shuffled through her purse for the necessary amount, a faint metallic sound fell into her hears. She looked up, spotting a small variety of coins resting in the center of the table. Rukudou-kun's hand settled on the edge of the wood.

"That should be enough to at least cover the tip"

Sakura felt a flood of gratitude similar to the one she had experienced when receiving his sweater. "You…don't have to-"

"I would like to" he told her firmly. "Otherwise, my late arrival will have been for nothing"

Late arrival…? Sakura replayed the words in her head before recalling what he had said earlier in the evening. So the thing had had to do that took him so long…was getting this money…

"Thank you, Rukudou-kun!" she exclaimed, heat rushing to her cheeks. "I mean, that's really sweet of you!"

He gave a small scoff at her words, avoiding eye contact as they stood to leave. This time, Sakura was able to notice the red on his face. She imaged that her dark hair must have made _her_ face look even redder.

Walking out into the night air, the girl sighed as the breeze cooled her cheeks. "Feels nice to be outside again!" she said while looking at her watch. "It's about eight thirty. I wonder what we should do"

Rinne glanced at her, or maybe the street post behind her. "We're still continuing?"

Sakura stared at the boy, brows knitting as she assumed the worst of his words "Well if you're bored, just say so!" she snipped, feeling surprisingly hurt.

"No" the redhead sighed, meeting her angry eyes with his passive ones. "That wasn't what I meant…won't your family worry if you're out for much longer?"

The girl slowly uncrossed her arms. "O-oh…I'm sorry, I just…"

"It's fine" Rinne told her, and this time Sakura was sure it was really the street post he was looking at, not her.

"No, it's not fine!" she stared at her feet. "I'm really sorry. And you don't have to worry about things like that- my family knows where I am and won't worry if I'm out a bit late. There's no school tomorrow"

"I see. Then, what are we doing next?"

"U-um…" Sakura tried to ignore the guilt that had settled in the pit of her stomach. "Well, there's the late show…their playing a movie I wanted to see. Oh, but it won't start for another forty minutes, so we have time to do something else, too"

Rinne remained silent, looking up at the night sky. In the loss of conversation Sakura looked upwards as well, the lights of the buildings making the stars look faint. Inhaling quietly, the girl looked at the boy standing beside her, the off-white sweater keeping the wind away from her skin as it brushed past them.

"How about we find a bench to sit at?" she proposed, smiling as he nodded. Daringly, she took hold of his hand tugged him with her down the street. Rukudou-kun's face remained straight even as they passed by another pair of teenagers holding hands.

That's right, Sakura thought to herself as she spotted a bench and began leading him to it. We've head hands quite a few times before, when dealing with spirits. I thought it might affect him a little since the situation is different, but I guess not…

She released her hold, pressing her skirt against the back of her thighs as she took a seat. Rinne settled down beside her, not close enough for someone to mistake them for a couple, but not so far apart that they looked like strangers. A few cars drove by, their lights splashing over the pair as they passed. Sakura blinked, rubbing her eyes to get the spots out of them.

"What's wrong?"

"Huh?" the girl blinked again, staring at Rinne with innocent confusion. He looked vaguely concerned, but it might have been the shadows playing tricks on her. "The headlights from the cars just now- it made my vision go all blotchy. Why?"

The redhead sank back against the bench. "Never mind, it's nothing"

"Well, if you say so…"

They became quiet again, the sounds of people passing by and moving vehicles, as well as the opening and closing of shop doors filling in the silence the two had slipped into. Sakura swung her feet back and forth lightly, the tips of her sandals brushing against the pavement. It was clean, unlike that which was to be found in the sewer.

"Oh yeah!" her feet stopped. "I just remembered, Rukudou-kun!"

"Hm?"

"That-" Sakura made sure her voice was a whisper, leaning closer to Rinne so he could hear. "In the sewer, that girl's body…shouldn't we tell someone about it? Like the police?"

"You probably didn't notice because you were being dragged along so fast," the redhead pointed out, "but that section of the sewer was closed off. There aren't any real entrances a person could use to get down there. What will you tell them? You were dragged down by a ghost and happened upon a skeleton? You'll sound crazy"

"But…" Sakura frowned, staring at the brightly lit shop across the street. "That girl's family…I'm sure they must have been waiting for her to come home all this time..."

For a moment he was unresponsive. "I'll move the bones to a place where they'll be found" Rinne muttered, closing his red eyes "Thought I don't know if forensics will be able to identify her"

A smile spread across Sakura's face. "Rukudou-kun…!"

"What now?"

"You're really…such a nice guy!" she laughed, patting her classmate on the head. He shoved her hand away, making the girl laugh even more.

"Stop it" he demanded, scowling.

"Come on!" Sakura urged, trying to reach his hair as he leaned away from her.

"I mean it, Mamiya Sakura! Cut it out!"

A pair of women who were walking past the bench being occupied by the two teenagers had taken interest in their antics, stopping to observe. The redhead was steadily becoming flustered, while the girl with braids laughed merrily at his struggling.

"Hey, isn't that cute?" the one woman asked, nudging her friend.

The other nodded agreeably. "It's hard to find innocent couples like that these days"

* * *

And now we have a shorter chapter again! I hope no one minds, but I feel it necessary to avoid putting filler in my chapters.

How did everyone like the latest manga chapter? We got to find out that Rinne is a quarter shinigami and that his grandfather is a mackerel! I think he might be living in that old building- we'll find out more next week though. This is such a good series. I really hope they make an anime out of it! RT has had quite a number of her works made into anime, so I don't see why not, right? I want Susumu Hirasawa to do the soundtrack XD.

Once again, thanks so much to those of you that reviewed! As always, I'll do my best to write quickly, but I make no guarantees.


	4. What Kind of Guy

**What Kind of Guy**

They had arrived at movies well ahead of time, buying tickets and finding a good pair of seats. Soon the theater started to fill, and within minutes the room was brimming with the excited chatter of people waiting for the movie to start. Sakura was no exception. The trailers on TV had looked really good.

"I don't suppose you go to the movies very often?" the girl wondered, nibbling on the chocolate she had bought from the concession stand.

"This would be my first time" Rinne replied.

"Really?" this surprised her. Sakura had thought he would have at least gone once or twice. "You've _never_ been in a movie theater before? I'm shocked!"

"Well…" the boy glanced to the side. "There have been a few times…what I mean is, it's my first time…with a ticket"

Sakura stared at the large blank screen in front of them as she thought about this statement. "You mean…you snuck in?"

"There are ghosts that have attachments to theaters, so it can't be helped"

"I bet you take your time with it though, right?" the girl nudged his arm playfully when he denied this. "So what movies have you seen?"

"I don't recall their titles"

"You're no fun" she joked, jumping in her seat a little as the lights dimmed. "Oh, it's starting!"

The theater became hushed, and then the sound from the speakers filled the room. Sakura watched the video playing on the screen intensively, her attention only wavering when she stole a glance at the boy sitting beside her. He looked…well, it was a bit hard to tell in the dark, but she didn't think he had a negative expression on his face. He looked more interested than in everyday life, at least.

The trailers finished playing, and then the credits for the feature film began to appear. Sakura broke off a piece of her chocolate and held it in front of Rinne's face. No one should watch a movie without something to keep them energized.

"What?" she head him say.

"Take it" she advised, peeking at the redhead again.

He shook his head. "No, thank you"

Dejected, she ate it herself. "Do you not like chocolate, Rukudou-kun?"

"I don't mind it"

She ate another piece, speculating. Did I offend him or something…? Lots of people share food, though. It's normal! The last morsel of chocolate entered her mouth as she thought this, feeling unhappy yet unable to keep herself from enjoying the sweetness. But Rukudou-kun doesn't think very normally, Sakura remembered, tapping her forehead with the now empty candy wrapper.

* * *

It was the about halfway through the movie. The plot had been revealed, things were starting to build to the climax, and the couple in front of them were making out.

Sakura shifted in her seat uncomfortably. Usually she could ignore these things, but the fact that she was on a date herself made it so much harder. She had taken a very quick look at Rukudou-kun to gauge his reaction to all of this and saw that his face as completely blank. Did it really not bother him?

They were making all of these little _noises_. Why wasn't the sound from the speakers drowning them out? It was distracting. Someone should turn up the volume. Then all she'd have to do was look past their shadowy figures, which wasn't too hard since there was a screen in front of them to stare at.

Oh, right, she was supposed to be watching that. The girl jerked her head up, wondering what she had missed. Someone in the movie had gotten beaten up. They were a minor character, so it probably wasn't very important…what if it was, though? Should she ask Rukudou-kun what had happened? But then he'd know she had been watching the people in front of her and not the movie. In her defense, they were getting quite heated, and-

A dull thud interrupted her thoughts. Someone had kicked the seat in front of her. At first Sakura thought it had been herself that had done it, being so irritated by the people sitting there. But she looked down slightly and saw that it was Rinne's foot that was pressed against the hard plastic.

The couple broke apart, the girl seemingly embarrassed as she shrunk down below the top of her seat's headrest. The guy she was with reacted quite differently, spinning in his seat to glare at the redhead that had interrupted them.

"What the hell, man?!" he hissed.

Completely drawn away from trying to watch the movie, Sakura looked to Rukudou-kun to see what the boy would do next. He was still wearing the same trained, blank stare that he had on before, which made her all the more curious about whether or not he was actually bothered by any of this.

"Some of us paid good money to see this film" the red haired teenager said in a low tone. "You're wasting it"

The person snorted. "Aren't you just jealous because your girl won't do the same?"

"Wha- Hey!" Sakura put on a shrewd glare. "Don't say stupid things! This guy here is a _gentleman_, unlike _you!_"

She must have spoken rather loudly, because an employee responsible for watching what went on inside the theater quickly approached them and inquired the nature of the argument. Rinne answered, say with a completely straight face that the couple in front of them had been engaging in sexual activities that in turn had distracted him and his date. Cheeks aflame, Sakura tucked her head down while the other pair got up to leave.

Saying something so embarrassing without even blinking…he definitely doesn't think normally! The girl sighed to herself, peeking over the now empty seat in front of her to watch the rest of the film.

* * *

"It was a little clichéd, but I thought the ending was good" Sakura mentioned as they exited the movie theater in a crowed of people.

"Regardless, I feel the tickets cost far too much" Rinne was quick to reply. "You should spend your money more wisely"

"I think it was plenty worth it!" the girl huffed.

They left the building quietly, walking down the street in the direction Sakura told the redhead they were going to go. They stopped when reaching a traffic light, waiting for the signal to tell them they could cross. This was it, huh? It was coming to an end- their date. Soon the little jingle she heard so often began playing and the two of them started to move. When their feet touched the sidewalk once again, Sakura peeked up at Rinne, wondering if he was happy to be heading back to the broken down club building he was living in or not.

Wanting to make the most of these last minutes but not sure how, the girl fiddled with one of her braids as she looked away from him. Her hazel eyes trailed along the ground a few steps ahead of where her feet were, a frown settling on her face as she wondered if she had accomplished what she had set out to do tonight.

What had she learned about Rukudou Rinne?

He had one set of clothing other than his middle school uniform. He looked good in street clothes, and would lend a girl his sweater if she was cold. He didn't mind eating plain boiled cabbage, and despite being poor, he would make efforts to pay for at least a tip- even if it made him late for their date. He didn't seem to care about holding hands in public. He had snuck into movie theaters before, but had never been inside one legally until now. He was irritated by people who acted inappropriately during a film…maybe. And he didn't mind chocolate.

It seems like a long list…but in reality, it isn't all that much, is it? Sakura thought to herself, looking up at the passing streetlights with a faint sigh. I doubt he would want to go out again…and somehow, I don't feel like I would learn much the second time around anyways. Turning a familiar corner to head home, she bumped into Rinne and stumbled out of her thoughts.

The red haired boy caught her by the arm, letting the girl steady herself before letting go. She blinked a few times, realizing how deeply she must have been thinking to have walked straight into him. "Sorry!" the girl laughed, trying to push away her embarrassment. "You're going straight, right? My house is this way, so I guess we'll part ways here"

"I'll walk you" the redhead told her, turning down the street like she had meant to. "It's dangerous for you to be out late alone"

"Ah…alright…" feeling a little surprised at his words, Sakura walked beside the boy as they headed towards her house. "It really isn't that far, though…"

"What kind of guy would I be if I didn't see you home?"

The line was both a sigh and a laugh, and had the tone of a question. Sakura knew that this wasn't the sort of question you gave an answer to, though, and silently walked with him. The quietness between the two was broken sooner than expected, her cell phone ringing intrusively. Sakura paused, reaching into her purse to fish it out. Withdrawing the electronic device, the girl looked at the display and saw a picture of one of her school friends.

"Your parents?" Rinne questioned from in front of her.

She shook her head. "No, it's Rika-chan…" why she's calling so late? Sakura wondered as she held the phone up to her ear. "Hello?"

"I phoned your house not too long ago and your parents said you weren't home yet!" Rika's voice sang through the speaker. "Sakura-chaaan! What are you two doing that's taking so looong?"

"I'm going home right now" the hazel eyed girl said, irritated at the sing-song tone the blonde on the other end was using. "Just what did you think we were doing?"

"Ehe! You _know!_" Sakura could picture the other girl winking to the line. "But that means he's not with you now, right? Tell me, tell me! How was it?"

"He_ is_ here" the braided girl retorted, wincing as her friend gave a sharp squeal.

"You're taking him home with you? Really?!" another squeal invaded Sakura's ear. "I'm excited for you!"

"_He's just walking me to my house!_" she exclaimed in embarrassment. Rukudou-kun raised a brow at her perturbed actions and she smiled a little, waving a hand through the air as if to say nothing was wrong. "Look, I'm almost home so I'll phone you back then, okay?"

"Okaaay" Rika's voice drawled. "Make sure to ask for a goodnight ki-" Sakura quickly hit the end button and tossed her phone back inside the confines of her purse.

"What were you talking about?" Rinne wanted to know as the two of them started walking again.

"Nothing much!" she laughed. "Just some stupid stuff"

"You seemed mad" the boy pointed out.

Sakura gave another laugh. "That's because Rika-chan is _really stupid_ sometimes!"

"…I don't think that's a good way to talk about your friends, Mamiya Sakura…"

* * *

This chapter is also short! Oh no! But if I continued any more I would have been crossing into the upcoming chapter events, and I can't have that. In any case, I promise next chapter will be longer.

Chapter seven of the manga was quite revealing. I was right about him living in that old building! That worked out well for my story. Now do you know what would be great? If Sakura and Rinne started up a ghost-hunting club and restored the club house with the funds they receive from the school! That would be Rinne's organization. Get it? Because 'kyoukai' means organization XD. And his livingplace would be better.

Special thanks to **piper** for the review of last chapter! It was the only one I got, but I guess that's my fault for writing so fast! I hope you enjoyed this chapter as well and are looking forward to the finale!


	5. In The Next Life

**In The Next Life**

Sakura sighed as she closed the door behind her, leaning back against it as she let herself settle down. Rinne was probably walking back to school now. He had seen her to the door, the two of them exchanging short goodbyes before she went inside and he turned to head back out onto the sidewalk. There had been no expression of feelings or a promise to go out another night, and certainly not any goodnight kisses.

"I guess I was just in a rush to get away" the braided girl mumbled as she bent down to undo her sandals. "Stupid Rika-chan, making me all nervous like that…"

Her fingers paused as the girl noticed the off-white material covering her arms. She stared for a minute, not knowing she possessed such a sweater and unable to recall putting it on before leaving the house. Then her memory kicked in and she redid the ties of her sandals before flinging the door open and rushing outside. She unzipped the sweater as she jogged out to the road, pulling it off awkwardly while heading in the direction of her school.

"I hope he didn't take that spirit path to get back!" Sakura whined, unable to spot her red haired classmate as she rounded a corner. "I forgot to give him back his sweater!"

When the traffic light turned red she stopped at the crosswalk, hopping from one of to the other impatiently. Glancing at the oncoming cars, the girl made a dash across the road. Jaywalking wasn't one of her usual practices, but she'd make an acceptation this one time, if it meant catching up to the boy. He'd been nice enough to accept her somewhat forced invitation to go out, the least she could do was give back the only normal sweater he owned.

The girl smiled as her hazel eyes caught sight of the redhead. He was walking with his hands in his pockets, the black tee-shirt he wore making his back blend with the darkened horizon.

"Rukudou-kun!" Sakura called after him, running before she knew it.

The slight heels of her footwear clicked on the pavement, her braids flowing behind her as she saw the school gates in the distance and the boy who was headed towards them at a calm, steady pace. The street suddenly seemed empty save the two of them. The number of people dwindled from her sight and even the sound of the cars rushing by became faint as Sakura called out his name yet again. Rinne heard her this time, looking back to see who was shouting at him. With only a few more meters to go the girl smiled and waved to him, and then tripped on a ridged crack in the sidewalk.

A shrill noise left her throat and Sakura cringed at sight of the pavement flying at her, screwing her eyes shut. Stretching her arms out blindly, she fisted the boy's sweater in one hand for some sort of mental support to help her with the torn skin she would soon have to endure. The painful meeting with the ground never came, though- instead Sakura felt herself fall into Rinne's arms, her body making a soft thud against his chest.

He's pretty fast, the girl thought in a daze, the off-white sweater trapped between her chest and his stomach. They stood like this for what felt like a long time, the noise of cars and chattering pedestrians becoming more distinct as she started to regain her senses. Sakura peeked up at her classmate, her hazel eyes meeting his shyly.

"Mamiya…Sakura…" he said her name slowly, making her heart race. His hands were on her arms- skin touching skin. Despite being a shinigami, something supposedly beyond life and even death, he was warm. "What are you doing here?"

His question vibrated through the piece of clothing between them, making her chest tighten. Her reason for being here…what was it again? It was suddenly hard to remember. He was so close…really close…

"_Make sure to ask for a goodnight ki-"_

Rika's shot-lived sentence floated through her mind, and Sakura found herself completing it effortlessly. "Kiss" she murmured aloud.

Rinne's expression became one of confusion, either not hearing what she had said or not understanding _why_ she'd said it. "Pardon?"

Sakura stared up at him blankly. Did she say something just now?

The girl's eyes widened drastically, blood rushing up to her face to dye her cheeks a shade of red that could have rivaled her classmate's hair color. "I…!" Sakura swallowed something in her throat as she did a double-take of their situation. He was holding her and they were standing close together and she'd just said- _just thought about_-

"Your sweater!" she exclaimed loudly, shoving the article of clothing in his face.

They stood in silence for a moment, before Rinne took a step back and reached for the material covering his head. "Ah, that's right…" he said as he pulled it off, his voice becoming clear as the sweater was removed. "I forgot about it. Thank you"

"It's no trouble" Sakura told him as he slipped his arms into its sleeves. "Thanks for lending it to me"

"It wasn't any trouble for me…" the redhead glanced at her. "But it did seem to be trouble for _you_, Mamiya Sakura. Don't tell me you ran all the way here?"

"Eh? Well, sure…but it's not a big deal…"

"You have blisters on your feet" he pointed out, the two of them looking down at the red marks showing where her sandals had dug into her skin.

"I'll be fine" Sakura assured him. "This always happens when I wear these sandals, anyways"

"Then why wear them?"

"They match my hair ties" she explained.

Rinne crossed his arms in scrutiny. "Then why wear the hair ties?"

Sakura looked at the cherry blossom ornaments holding her braids in place. "…Because they're my favorites" the girl answered.

Her classmate made a thoughtful noise and seemed to let the subject go. "Well, at any rate, you should be heading home now" he said in a concerned tone.

Sakura frowned as he stared to walk in the direction from which she had come. "Wait…you don't have to come with me! I can get home by myself…"

"We've already had this conversation, haven't we?"

"I feel bad, though" she said to try and change his mind. "You've already taken me home once tonight"

Rinne sighed before taking the girl's arm and tugging her into an alleyway. She wasn't sure where to look, and after glancing around nervously, Sakura settled for a pop bottle a few feet away. "W-what?" she stuttered, unable to ignore the small space between them.

"Let's do this, then" the boy announced, and the yomi no haori made its appearance as elusively as ever.

Once he had shrugged it on, Rinne took hold of Sakura's hand and pulled her onto a spirit path. Soon enough she was in front of her doorway once more. The girl blinked a few times, feeling a little stupid over not realizing what he'd had in mind.

"Oh" she spoke awkwardly. "Well, I didn't think of that"

The red haired youth said nothing at those words, preparing to leave. "I'll be seeing you, then"

Sakura started to nod, but then it clicked that he was saying goodbye and she moved to stop him. "Wait!"

The boy did as told, looking back at her questioningly. "What is it?"

The schoolgirl took a breath of air to calm herself. Their first parting of the evening hadn't been satisfying- she's do things properly this time around. "I just wanted to say…I had a lot of fun tonight" she stared at her feet, the reddened skin around her ankles and toes throbbing in time with her heartbeat. "And I hope you had fun too"

Rinne didn't say anything for a long time. Sakura kept her eyes looking downwards, feeling too unguarded to make eye contact. Finally he spoke, his words putting a smile on her face.

"I did" Rukudou-kun agreed, turning to leave once more. "Even though it was a bit expensive"

Beaming, Sakura started to open her door. "See you on Monday, Rukudou-kun!"

Walking inside, the girl shut the door behind herself and leaning back against it similarly to earlier that night, only her mood was much better this time. Taking off her sandals, she rubbed her sore skin gently and picked her purse up from where she had dropped it and headed upstairs. Once she was in her room, the girl withdrew her cell phone from her purse and gave Rika a call.

Her classmate picked up after a few rings. "Hello?"

"Rika-chan?" she asked to confirm. "Hi, I'm finally home. I forgot something, so it took me longer than I thought…" she paused, listening to her friend's questions on the other end.

"So how was your date, Sakura-chan?" the blonde inquired eagerly.

Sakura hummed as she fell back onto her bed. "It was…nice"

* * *

"You were gone for so long!" Rokumon pestered when Rinne entered the old club room. "I was lonely!"

"I highly doubt that" the redhead retorted, eyeing the various cans of food lying open and empty along the floor. "Were these _mine?_" he asked darkly.

"No! No, of course not!" the black cat promised. "Some people just gave them to me"

Rinne glared at him. "How would they expect a kitten to carry around tin cans?"

"They must have seen my great potential" the feline preened.

"I'll go along with that this time" the shinigami sighed, too tired to start an argument over it. Sitting down, he folded up the yomi no haori carefully before noticing that the cat demon was looking at him expectantly, his paws crossed in a human fashion. "…What?"

"Well?" Rokumon prompt.

"What do you mean, well?"

The teenager's partner wagged his head sadly. "Well, _how was it_, of course! Your date with Sakura-sama?"

Rinne kept his face blank, looking away from the cat after a minute. "That's none of your concern, Rokumon"

"Of course it is!" the demon insisted. "We're partners! We should know everything about each other, including our love lives!"

The boy fought to keep himself from rolling his eyes. "Do you even _have_ a love life?"

"Nine of them!" Rokumon said with a sly chuckle.

"Right…I'll go a long with that _this_ time" Rinne said again, removing the sweater he was wearing and placing it on the small table centered on the room's floor. "It was fine. I got the corrupt spirit to pass on fairly smoothly"

"That's all you think about" the cat berated. "What about Sakura-sama? You didn't bore her with your lack of interest in _everything else_, did you?"

The teenager twitched slightly, persuading himself to _not_ throw Rokumon out the window. "She…said she had fun" Rinne muttered, pushing the table over towards the windows to make room to go to sleep. "And I'm interested in plenty of things" he added in for good measure.

"That's good!" Rokumon said while hopping up onto the table to get eye to eye with the boy. "See? Now what was so bad about sharing that with little ol' me?"

Before Rinne could reply, the black cat's ears perked in surprise and he began sniffing the air experimentally. His head turned in the direction of the off-white sweater resting beside him and a feral grin crossed his face. The redhead looked away quickly, knowing what the creature was going to say.

"Rinne-sama…this article of clothing smells an awful lot like Sakura-sama" the demon commented, stepping closer to put his noise on the fabric. "In fact, I'd say it smells _exactly_ like her! I wonder how close to two of you must have gotten for-"

The cat was silenced when Rinne landed a blow atop his head, snatching the sweater away from him in the process. "I only gave it to her to wear" the redhead said defensively. "Don't go assuming things"

"Ow…you made me bite my tongue, Rinne-sama!" Rokumon cried, with feeling. "My poor, sensitive tongue!"

"Maybe it will help you remember to stay out of other people's affairs"

* * *

It was another sunny Monday morning when Rinne took his seat in class, light streaming through the windows to soak into his track suit. Sakura often wondered if he found the heat absorbing material to be annoying during the summertime. He never complained about it though- not that he complained about much at all. Smiling, she approached him with a notebook in hand.

"Good morning, Rukudou-kun" she greeted him, laying the thin book down atop his desk.

Without returning her salutations, the redhead looked at the presented object curiously. "What is this?" he asked, sounding neither bothered nor grateful.

"My notes" the braided girl replied. "I said I'd loan them to you, remember?"

He appeared to think about this for a moment, before a look of recollection crossed his face. "…Thank you, Mamiya Sakura. I'll have them returned soon"

She nodded in agreement, taking her seat beside him. The class started soon afterwards, the two of them sitting quietly while the teacher talked and wrote on the chalkboard. A few times she sneaked glances at the boy, and one of those times they made eye contact. Her first reaction was to look away as quickly as possible, but then a strange, relaxed sensation came over the girl and she returned his gaze, giving him a small wave with her pencil in hand. Looking ever so slightly confused at her gesture he mimicked her, waving his pencil in the air discreetly. Laughing silently, Sakura turned her attention towards the front once again, eagerly awaiting the start of lunch.

When it finally did come Rukudou-kun got up and left without a word, Sakura heading off to search for him once she had finished her bento. He was no doubt heading to the instrument shelter to see what new offerings he had gotten to eat. Sure enough, when Sakura neared the area where the shelter was located Rinne was there as well, wearing his haori and collecting various foodstuffs.

"What sort of requests did you get today?" she asked, letting him know of her presence.

The redhead looked up. This would be the first time she had sought him out at lunch just to talk- usually she would tell him to stop ripping off their classmates. But he'd paid for the tip Saturday night, so…

"Not very many" he told her, taking a seat on the bench where he so often ate. His makeshift collection box was on his lap, leaving room for the girl to sit down. She did, and Rinne continued. "Apparently there's been some odd things happening at the old basketball court in the park"

"Oh…" Sakura looked at him thoughtfully. "Do you play basketball?"

The red haired youth gave her a strange look. "…I certainly hope you won't ask me to attend a basketball match with you next, Mamiya Sakura"

She couldn't help but laugh out loud at the statement. "No!" she exclaimed once her laughter had died down. "No, of course not. Don't worry; I don't want to play sports with you"

Rukudou-kun seemed happy to hear that, leaning back against the bench in relief. Playing sports was probably looked at as something too time-consuming for him to get involved in, she thought. He was probably good at them anyways, though.

"I moved that girl's bones yesterday" Rinne said with a sudden topic change. "Someone should find them soon enough and report it to the police"

"That's good…" she murmured, tapping one of her shoes against the ground a little. "Well, not _good_, but…" the girl trailed off, not sure of what she was saying. "Thanks"

"I did it because I wanted to, so the thanks is unnecessary"

I'm still glad you did it though, she told him silently. "Hey…I've been thinking about something…" he looked at her, and she quietly pushed herself along. "About the conversation we had in the restaurant…you know, about uniforms?"

The boy picked up a can from his box, observing the label as he spoke. "You look fine" he said with forced indifference.

Sakura blinked, and then shook her head to show that he had the wrong idea and to get rid of the blush on her cheeks. It was during her conversation with Rika late on Saturday night that made her realize the things she had said about her looking cute in uniform was probably an uncomfortable topic for her date. "No, no. I-I'm not talking about that. I mean about you being able to afford one"

"You mean how I am _not_ able to afford one" he corrected pointedly.

"Right, right…well, I'd said that maybe you could afford one in the next life, remember?" he nodded to say he did. "Well…I was just thinking that it would be really great if, when we were reborn, we could go to the same school as each other again" Sakura mused, a genuine smile appearing on her face as she continued. "And then I could get to see you in uniform…and then…it would be nice if we could hang out like this at that time, too. Maybe we'd even go on a date again! Wouldn't that be fun? History repeats itself and all of that…" with a happy sigh the girl trailed off, letting her fantasy-like words fade into the air.

Rinne was quiet for a long moment, his expression unreadable to her. For a moment Sakura feared she might have made him uncomfortable with what she had said, but the redhead cleared his throat a little and rustled through his offerings to occupy himself.

"Actually…" he started slowly, his reddened face unnoticeable in contrast to his hair. "I had planned to go visit the basketball court this Sunday…"

The girl watched the items in his box get shuffled around until she picked up on what he was hinting at, glancing at his profile. "Oh, uh…what time?"

"I was thinking noon"

Sakura felt her earlier smile refresh itself. "Then how about we meet up for lunch?" she capped her hands together. "Oh! And it'd be a good chance to give me my notes back, too!"

Rukudou Rinne wore a small smile of his own, gathering up the bits of change to be found amongst the food offerings into his hand.

* * *

_**—The End**_

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* * *

T.T!!! My first story to be completed in my history of fanfiction writing!! I'm SO PROUD OF MYSELF!!! Of course, I had a very simple plot, some rather underdeveloped characters to work with, not too many chapters…well, whatever! I'm still proud of myself! I even left some room for continuation, though I don't think I'll be doing a sequel of any sort. Maybe in the future I'll write another Kyoukai no Rinne story and make reference to the events in this one, but that's about it.

Sorry about the wait for this final chapter, and I hope you all enjoyed the story while it lasted! Thanks so much to those who have reviewed, your encouragement really helped me. I was nervous about being the first one to post in the Kyoukai no Rinne section, but your kind words put me at ease and got me to finish just the way I wanted! Thanks once more, and I hope to see you guys on fanfiction again sometime!


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